


We are a team, a family

by OneWithoutAName



Series: Thieves AU [6]
Category: X-Men (Alternate Timeline Movies), X-Men (Movieverse)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Thieves, Charles Being Concerned, Domestic, Families of Choice, M/M, Minor Character Death, Period-Typical Racism, Protective Erik
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-04
Updated: 2019-01-10
Packaged: 2019-07-06 21:28:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,498
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15894471
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OneWithoutAName/pseuds/OneWithoutAName
Summary: Everything seems good. Erik and Charles are now leaders of a criminal gang with strange gifts, their new home is full of life and their first break in goes smoothly. This seems to be the beginning of something wonderful.But an old enemy is just waiting for his chance to end it all...Final part of this series, you might want to start from the beginning if you haven't already.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I'm going to rant.
> 
> I'm sorry for all this waiting, but I've been a DM for two D&D campaigns and they have and they will take time away from me. Also, I have just been lazy... But not anymore! Now this first chapter will pressure me to write faster! So fear not, I will see this series to an end!
> 
> Also, I wanted to thank you for your support, were it a kudos, or comment or even just reading this. You guys keep me going!
> 
> And for the work itself, I will put more characters, tags and warnings when I post more chapters. (I might even change the title.) For now, I'm not entirely sure what I will write. But for warnings, I think only violence will be the only one relevant later. The rating, I think will be once again somewhere between T and M.
> 
> Okay, I think I'm finished here, so please enjoy the first chapter.  
> And as always, characters are not mine but the mistakes are. ;)

Early autumn, 1873

 

The night was dark, new moon leaving only faint light of the stars to light it and a strong wind causing all kinds of eerie sounds. It was a perfect night for thieves not to be seen or heard. Charles watched a silhouette of the manor from where he was hidden at the edge of a tree line. He could feel the residents’ minds, all of them asleep. He let his own mind brush against them, making their slumber slightly deeper, so they would stay that way well in to the morning.

_‘The coast is clear, you may proceed.’_ He send the message to the team, smiling at the children’s barely contained excitement.

_‘Finally! C’mon Magneto, open the door!’_ Sean said, his excited mental voice louder than was comfortable. They had practiced projecting, but the boy still had some fine tuning to do.

_‘Not so fast. Do you even know what you are supposed to do?’_ Erik asked drily and Charles could almost feel him raise one unimpressed eyebrow.

_‘Mystique and I will search the kitchen and dining area.’_ The boy told smugly.

_‘Don’t let him out of your sight Mystique.’_ Erik said to Raven, who promised to do just that, to Sean’s annoyance.

_‘I will search the library and the drawing room with Havoc.’_ Angel said, probably smirking.

_‘And that leaves me with you bub. So can we go or do you want the sun to rise first?’_ Logan sounded bored, but Charles could feel that it was more an act than anything. Erik’s irritation on the other hand was all too real.

_‘We can go, Wolverine. Professor will tell you all when it’s time to leave.’_ Erik said and opened the door with his powers.

 

Charles kept track of where each of them went and of all the people sleeping, making sure that they stayed that way. They’d done this couple of times already, but it didn’t make this any easier for his nerves. He had been a bit reluctant to let the children come with them. But they had made a fair number of decent arguments and there was nothing Charles or Erik could do about it. Though, Erik’s reason why he had not wanted them along was that they probably would just have made things harder. When Erik and Charles finally relented, the children were so excited that they took it all to the next level.

 

…

 

_“We should have code names!” Raven said with a huge smirk and other kids agreed loudly while Erik and Charles changed worried glances. They had gathered to the dining room, expect for the three youngest ones, who were playing outside._

_“Well, there is not actual reason for that, as we always communicate telepathically during our missions.” Charles argued, but the kids all but ignored him._

_“I will be called Mystique.” Raven announced, sitting a bit straighter on her chair._

_“No, I wanted to be Mystique!” Sean complained, but Raven just stuck out her tongue._

_“Too slow. Work out something else.”_

_“In that case I’m… I’m going to be… Banshee!” Sean said and looked proud of himself._

_“You’re what now?” Alex snorted._

_“Banshee, a shrieking spirit in Irish mythology. Fits you perfectly.” Logan explained and everyone turned to look at him._

_“I didn’t know you were an expert on mythology, Logan.” Erik said, making other man shrug._

_“When you are as old as me bub, you see just how much nonsense you can actually remember.” Logan said. They still weren’t sure how old exactly the man was, but Charles was quite sure that he was older than he looked like. His body’s ability to heal made it almost impossible to tell._

_“Alright, then I’m going to be Havoc. Nice and simple.” Alex announced._

_“Yes, and because you’re good at causing it even without your powers.” Armando teased the blond, who acted wounded._

_“Ouch, man. How could you say that?”_

_“It’s true though.” The other boy said smiling, earning a few laughs around the table._

_“What about you then? What will your name be?” The blonde asked, wanting to change the subject._

_“I’m not sure. My power is quite random, so it’s difficult to come up with anything.” Armando said, leaning back on his chair and thinking hard. Others kept quiet, trying to think something for their friend too._

_It was Hank, who finally spoke up._

_“May I make a suggestion?” His voice was weak, but everyone’s attention sifted to him._

_“Of course.” Armando nodded for the other to continue, which the blue haired boy did, after coughing, trying to get his voice to work._

_“Well, your power is to adapt to new environments and situations. And, there is this scientist who has studied how plants and animals adapt to their environments and how they have evolved. It’s quite interesting actually, how some species stay the same for hundreds of years while others seem to change-“_

_“Hank, you’re losing the point here.” Raven interrupted, sounding more amused than annoyed. Hank stuttered an apology, before continuing._

_“The point is, the man’s name is Charles Darwin and so I thought your code name could be, well, Darwin.” The boy finished, shrugging._

_“Darwin.” Armando echoed, nodding to himself thoughtfully. “You know, I actually like it. Thanks Hank.” Armando’s approval made the doctor smile sheepishly. It was short-lived, as Alex opened his mouth._

_“Lucky for us, it’s not going to be that hard to figure something out for you Hank. Something like Bigfoot or ape-man or-“_

_“Alex!” Charles called with firm voice and send him a look so stern the boy duck his head, unable to hold the eye contact. His neck and ears turned red from shame._

‘Scolding me like a child.’ _Charles heard him think._

‘And I will stop when you start acting like an adult.’ _Charles told him, even his younger brother usually acted more mature than him._ ‘You really should know better.’ _He could still feel Alex’s frustration, but thought that it would be better to let him figure things out on his own. There was no need to twit Hank about his appearance. Especially when the young man was still getting used to it and this was supposed to be one place people would not discriminate others for what they were._

_“I will say this again. There is no actual need for aliases, so if someone doesn’t want one, it’s alright.” He spoke to everyone, but sent a wave of reassurance to Hank._

_“I think I just need more time.” The young man said._

_“There is no rush. Take all time you need.”_

_There was a stretched silence, before Angel spoke up._

_“I think Angel suits me quite well. So no need to change that.” Her wings fluttered to prove her point._

_“Good. Now that this nonsense is out of the way, I can go to-“ Erik said, starting to stand up, but Raven interrupted him._

_“Not so fast! You three need names too!” She pointed a finger at him, making him stop._

_“Didn’t you hear what Charles just said? And I have better things to do.” But Raven wouldn’t let it go so easily._

_“Come on, Erik. This creates team spirit.” Erik just rolled his eyes and a sneaky smile made its way to the girl’s lips. “But if you insist on leaving, we just need to make the code name for you without your input.” Erik’s jaw tightened at the threat and Raven looked like a cat who got the cream._

_“Verdammt.” Erik cursed under his breath and yielded, accepting his lost. Charles gave him a mental pat on the shoulder. They were in this together._

_Erik didn’t make things easy for the children and rejected a suggestion after another. Most of them had something to do with metal, which made sense, but just to get things along, Charles told them about his theory, that it wasn’t metal that Erik controlled, but magnetic fields. He might have gone into too much detail about it, as after a while Sean begged him to “Stop the lecture already”. Which made Armando suggest that they should call him Professor. Charles almost fell in love with the name, as it was probably closest thing to a real professor or scientist he would ever get. And after some more suggestions, Angel came up with a name Magneto, which finally was good enough for Erik. No one else but Charles was able to tell that the man actually liked the sound of it._

_The children weren’t able to even suggest anything when Logan already made up his mind._

_“I’ll be Wolverine.” He said, unlit cigar still between his teeth. Charles had forbidden smoking inside._

_“Like your old inn?” Sean asked, tilting his head._

_“Yep.” The man grunted, but Charles thought he saw something akin to longing in the man’s eyes. It was over so quickly though, that he wasn’t sure if he just imagined it._

_“Great! Now we just need a name for our gang.” Raven’s announcement made people around the table sigh._

_“All this naming is giving me a head ace!” Alex whined._

_“Actually, I have an idea.” Hank spoke up. “In mathematics-“_

_“Keep it short Hank!” Alex interrupted, but Hank ignored him._

_“-the unknown is marked with an X.” He finished and everyone watched him in silence._

_“So, we should be, what, X-men?” Angel asked, half joking, but it actually sounded pretty good_.

 

…

 

Erik and Logan made their way to upstairs. Charles had pulled some memories of the manor’s layout from the minds of the residents, so they didn’t need to wonder where each room was and finding the study was an easy task. The door wasn’t locked, but the room was as dark as the rest of the house.

_‘Better find some light so this won’t take the whole night.’_ Logan said to Erik, using the link Charles had provided, and the telepath was quick to aid them.

_‘There is a lamp on the table just right from you and another on the desk.’_ He told and provided an image of the room in sunlight and locations of the lamp.

_‘Thanks Prof, the words would have been enough. Or are you going to hold our hands through the whole robbery?’_ Logan asked sarcastically as Erik lit the first lamp closest to the door, weak light of the oil lamp illuminating the room.

_‘Fine, I can tell when my help is not appreciated. I will go and make sure that the children are doing alright.’_ Charles sounded hurt, but Erik could tell he was just pretending. What a drama queen. _‘I am the drama queen?’_ Charles inquired and judging by Logan’s lack of any reaction, with a voice only meant for him.

_‘You have your moments.’_ Erik said and felt humor and fondness wash over him like waves.

_‘As do you.’_ The words were followed by a soft feeling of lips against his cheek. _‘I’ll go now, but tell me when you find it.’_ And with that, Charles’ presence faded, leaving only faint, but familiar connection between them. Erik gave himself a small moment just to feel happy before he walked further to the room after Logan.

_‘Check the desk and the drawers. I’ll take care of the safe.’_ Logan just nodded, turning the lamp on the desk on before he started do go through the drawers, putting everything valuable in to his backpack.

 

The safe was easy to locate, a huge box of metal practically singing to Erik from the wall, behind a tasteless painting of the head of the house himself. Sir Adam Benson was clearly an egoistic man who just loved attention. That much had been obvious when they had made some background research about the man. But thanks to that vanity, they knew about this new purchase of his and something as priceless and unique as that was just too great of a temptation for him and Charles to resist. Old habits die hard, after all. Erik moved the painting out of his way, exposing a small metal door of the safe. Erik felt out the mechanism with his powers. It wasn’t the most complex lock he had come across, but it could take a couple of minutes. Well, they had time. He took a deep breath and laid his hand against the lock, focusing his powers to it, moving the small parts just the right way. Erik didn’t even notice how he fell into a familiar trance of his powers, focusing entirely on the task in hand and forgetting everyone around him.

 

Much sooner than he had anticipated the safe let out a soft _“click”_ , pulling Erik back to the room. With a smug grin he nudged the door with his powers so it swung open. Inside was covered with dark velvet, there were some important looking papers, a couple bundles of money and letters and in the middle of it all a beautiful wooden box, not high or wide, but almost as long as his arm from the wrist to the elbow. The reason they had come here tonight. Erik took the box out of the safe with both hands, it was surprisingly heavy. He turned it in his hands carefully, admiring the fine work the carpenter had done. The wood was dark and shined even in the low light of the two lamps, roses and vines were carved into the lid and the sides. There was another lock, built in the box, but it was simple, meant more for the looks than to actually protect what was inside. Erik ran his forefinger over the lock, using his powers to unlock it and finally opened the box.

 

Inside were a rose, the stem and leaves made from gold-plated steel and the petals were finely cut rubies that appeared to glow even in the low light. It seemed almost impossible that something like it even existed.

_‘Charles.’_ Erik called with his mind and soon felt their link come back to life as Charles moved his attention to him. Erik didn’t need to explain, he just kept his mind open, inviting his partner to use his eyes.

_‘Oh my god.’_ Charles gasped. _‘It’s magnificent.’_ Erik hummed in agreement and took the rose out of the box. This had to be the most valuable thing they had ever stolen. There was no way to sell it forward, not that they wanted to, they intended to keep it as a trophy. They just had to find a good place to it.

 

A low whistle just behind his shoulder almost made Erik jump out of his skin. He turned to glare Logan, who had sneaked behind him to get a look of their price too. The other man didn’t even seem to notice the murderous look as his eyes were fixated on the rose.

_‘Alright, you were right Prof, definitely worth the trip.’_ He admitted, as he had been opposed to the idea of the long journey just for a flower.

_‘I’m right quite often, but thanks for admitting it.’_ Charles’ almost smug voice and a glare Logan gave upwards made Erik smirk.

_‘It was this or babysitting duty and anything beats that.’_ Logan grumbled and took a couple steps back.

_‘Of course Wolverine, of course.’_ The telepath said, but his voice told clearly that he didn’t believe the man at all. They all knew that Logan had a soft spot for the youngest members of the gang, even if he didn’t want to show it. Logan huffed and Charles seemed to take pity on him and changed the subject. _‘Are you ready to leave?’_ He asked and Erik put the rose back in the box and closed it.

_‘Soon. We’ll just finish things here.’_ He told as he put the box in his backpack.

_‘Good. I’ll tell the others to- No, Banshee! Don’t!’_ Charles’ presence in their minds faded away once again and Erik shared an amused look with Logan.

 

_‘So, anything interesting?’_ Erik asked as he took some bundles of money, before he closed the safe door and put the painting back to its place.

_‘Not much. Just a fancy writing set and a bottle of excellent whiskey.’_ Logan shrugged.

_‘Hopefully the children found something worth taking.’_ Erik thought aloud, scanning the bookshelves in case there was something interesting. And indeed, one book caught his attention. He walked to the bookshelf and took the thick book, clearly new and unread.

_‘Found something?’_ Logan asked and followed Erik, who leafed through the book before checking the first page. A winner’s smirk appeared to Erik’s face.

_‘I did indeed.’_ He said and Logan looked at the title.

_‘Not really your genre, is it.’_ He noted.

_‘It’s not for me.’_ Erik said with sly voice, which made Logan roll his eyes. Lord give me strength.

 

Erik didn’t pay any attention to the other man, but closed the book and put it in the backpack. He also made sure that Charles was still preoccupied, their link still dim at the back of his head, and hid the knowledge of the book deep in his mind where the telepath wouldn’t notice it. When he was sure that there was no way that Charles would find out about the book before the right moment, he turned towards Logan.

_‘Would you like to do the honors?’_ He asked and nodded towards the painting. Logan smirked and lifted his hands, where the sharp, bony claws grew out between his knuckles.

_‘With pleasure.’_

 

…

 

BREAK-IN AT BENSON MANOR

PRICELESS JEWEL ROSE STOLEN

 

The headline screamed for attention. The article told how a group of thieves had broken in to Sir Adam Benson’s manor and stolen valuable property including the rose made from gold and rubies that Sir Benson had just ordered. No one saw or heard anything, the whole manor had been sleeping soundly through the invasion. The police is in a dead end, there was no sign of forced entry and the only clue was a huge X that had been cut to the painting in the Sir Benson’s study with something that represented huge claws. Under a picture of the damaged painting was a smaller headline.

 

WHO ARE THE X-MEN?

 

"Oh I know who they are." A man said with a low voice and put the paper down with shaky hands. "And it seems that the mice have forgotten that the cat is still here."


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Took me like 8 months but the next chapter is here! Happy new year everybody!  
> I'm so, SO sorry it took this long, but I've been having some serious motivation problems. But I will not abandon this series, but you might have to wait the next update other 8 months. Hopefully not...  
> Anyway, in the meanwhile enjoy this chapter ^-^'

Several Weeks later

 

“Look Charles! I did it!” Ororo squealed excitedly, both of her arms lifted forward towards a small whirlwind. Charles joined Jean’s happy clapping where he sat on the stairs of the porch.

“Well done Ororo! You learn quickly!” He praised the girl, who puffed her chest and looked very pleased. But pride comes before a fall, as the girl lost her concentration and the whirlwind vanished, leaving the girls stare an empty spot on the ground with dumbfounded expressions. That was, before both of them started to laugh and giggle like it had been the funniest thing in the world. Charles chuckled, the girls’ happiness was contagious and hit him with gentle and warm waves. About a month ago Ororo’s crying had caused it rain inside the house. Since then the girl had practiced her control every day and her hair had started growing silvery white.

 

“It must be nice. To be able to control the wind and rain.” Charles turned to look Scott, who was sitting beside him. He tried to sound happy, but the adult could hear bitterness and sadness through his voice. The boy tried to be brave, but anyone’s spirit would be down in his place. It had been only few days since Scott’s powers had manifested. He had been suffering from pain in his eyes almost a week before he had destroyed the roof of the chicken coop with a red blast from his eyes. The chickens were alright, but Scott couldn’t open his eyes without causing damage, so now he was forced to wear bandage over his closed eyes.

“Yes, it is truly remarkable.” Charles agreed, but saw a need to add more to it. “And your gift is too. We just need to learn to understand it.”

“It doesn’t seem like a gift to me.” Scott pouted, not trying to act happy anymore. Charles felt lost. He still didn’t have much experience with kids and his own family hadn’t been a prime example how to treat them right either. He tried to think how his own father had explained things to him, he had always kept things simple, but not treating Charles like he was just a stupid child.  

“It might seem like that for time to time. My own powers have caused me pain every now and then, but I’m still happy I have them. And I’m sure that others have had same feelings as well.” Charles said, weighting every word carefully. Scott stayed silent for a while and when he spoke, his voice was just above a whisper.

“I could have hurt the chickens.” If he didn’t sound so upset, almost afraid, Charles would have laughed at the statement. But somehow he knew that the boy wasn’t only worried about the poor birds.

“Are you afraid that you will hurt one of us?” He asked gently and the boy gave a shaky nod that broke Charles’ heart in half. “Oh Scott, I promise you that we’ll find a way to help you.

“But what if you don’t? You will force me to leave!” The boy cried out and Charles could see tears dampening the bandage.

“No, Scott. Why would you-“ He didn’t get any further when the girls came running to them and started asking questions without giving Charles a chance to answer.

“Is Scott leaving us?”

“Why are you going to send Scott away?”

“Will Alex leave too?”

“I will go if Scott goes!”

“I will cry if you force Scott to go!”

 

Charles was overwhelmed by the hurricane of the emotions but got his voice in check before things managed to escalate further.

“Everyone, calm down!” He used his most authoritative voice without shouting. He used the same voice on their classes when they didn’t pay attention. The girls fell silent, but looked at him suspiciously. Charles took a deep calming breath before he continued. “No one is forcing Scott to leave, Scott is, in fact, not going anywhere and there is no reason for blackmail.” Charles held his hands slightly up in calming manner as he spoke and the girls seemed to settle a bit more turning from upset to confused.

“But, why would Scott say that then?” Ororo asked, tilting her head and Charles glanced at Scott, who held his head low and his shoulders were tense.

“Well, sometimes it can be overwhelming when your powers manifest. And it has been rough few days for Scott.” As he spoke, Charles put his hand on the boy’s shoulder. Scott tensed at first, but relaxed soon after and let out a heavy sigh. Jean took a couple tentative steps to the boy and took his hand in both of hers. Scott winced a little, but didn’t pull his hand away.

“Then he should practice. Like Ororo and the others.” She stated like it was obvious. Oh if only things were so simple. But she had given him an idea.

“That is true Jean. But Scott’s powers are a bit complicated to work with, just like Alex’s powers, so it will take some time for me, Hank, Erik and Logan to come up with a proper way of practice.” Charles explained and felt victorious when Scott raised his head, mind filled with newfound hope, when his brother was mentioned. The telepath let himself smile as he continued. “In the meantime, Scott should practice maneuvering himself around now that he cannot see.” He gave the girls a cheeky smile. “And I think you two can help him with that.” He said and the girls grinned in unison and Jean tugged baffled Scott up.

“Charles is right! Come on Scott, you need to practice!” She encouraged as Ororo snatched the boy’s walking staff from the ground where it had laid.

“Jean’s right! It’s time for you to do something you lazy bum!” She said as he pushed the wooden staff they had found from the forest to the boy’s hands.

“I’m not a lazy bum!” Scott defended himself, face red as a tomato, but the black haired girl just put her hands on her hips.

“Prove it then!” She challenged and Scott buffed his chest, already in much higher spirit and up to the challenge.

“I will! You’ll see!” He said and let Jean lead him further from the house as Ororo followed.

“Don’t go too far! It’s almost time for dinner!” Charles yelled after the children who answered in chorus.

 

Charles chuckled as he watched them go, before he stood up and walked back in the house, that the children had half-jokingly started to call “The Manor”, and to the kitchen.  The room was pleasantly warm after sitting outside in crispy autumn air and the telepath took a moment just to appreciate it. That and the all too domestic sight of Erik cutting some vegetables, towel thrown over his shoulder while a metal ladle was stirring the soup on the stove seemingly by itself. Charles didn’t realize that he was staring, before Erik spoke to him with amused tone.

“I’m starting to suspect that you are trying to slip from the cooking duty.”  The metalbender said and added the vegetables to the soup before looking at Charles, who smiled little embarrassed.

“While not my intension, I can’t say that I feel disappointed about it.” He confessed and stepped fully into the room. Unlike Erik, he doesn’t possess the skill of culinary arts. He does know how to cook, they both had to learn in order survive, but he doesn’t enjoy it as Erik does. The older man chuckled and wiped his hands on the towel before tossing it to the table.

“In that case you’ll be happy to hear that there is not really much to do anymore.” He said, lifting his arms.

“True, I am. And I told the kids that the dinner would be soon.” Charles answered smiling and turned to look out of the window, to the front yard where Jean and Ororo took turns to hold Scott’s hand and lead him around. Erik came to stand beside him and followed his line of sight.

 

“Scott seems happier.” He observed and Charles nodded.

“For now, but I think he needs to hear something concrete so he can truly let go of his anxiety about his gift. Unfortunately we don’t know much about it yet.” The telepath worried his lip. Life was unfair, he knew it well, but somehow it seemed even more so now when it happened to one of their family’s youngest members. Erik put a hand on his shoulder, squeezing it reassuringly like _he_ was the one who could read minds.

“Scott is brave and he is not alone. I’m sure that we’ll figure out something soon enough.”  Charles closed his eyes and allowed himself a moment to bathe in the confidence that was Erik’s mind. He put his own hand on top of the metalbender’s and turned to look at him.

“How can you always be so certain about things?” He asked, small smile playing on his lips. Erik smiled back, but his voice was completely sincere when he spoke.

“Because we are a team. I know you. And I know that you will not stop before you have found a way to help Scott. You are too stubborn to do that.” Charles laughed at that.

“Thank you Erik.” _‘For everything.’_ Erik moved his hand to grip the back of the telepath’s neck and stroked it with his thumb.

_‘I’m always here for you.’_ The promise made Charles’ heart to swell with warmth.

_‘And I will always be here to you, too.’_ And if the adoring look in Erik’s face was anything to go by, he felt just the same thing in his own heart.

 

They stayed like that for a moment, just enjoying the closeness of one another, until Erik reluctantly stepped back and moved to check the soup.

“If you want to help somehow, you could always set the table. I’m sure that Logan has tortured the children enough for today and they’re going to be back soon.” He could almost hear how the telepath rolled his eyes.

_‘As if you treated them with all the love and care when you train them.’_ The stray though made Erik chuckle.

_‘A bit of tough love never killed anyone.’_

“Yet.” Charles called out loud as he left the kitchen to set the table in the dining room, pulling another laugh out of Erik. The warm feeling from their shared promise and a sudden realization just how content and happy he felt made him think of the packet hidden in their bedroom. He had waited for the right moment to give it to Charles and now he felt like it was the time. So removing the pot from the hot stove he slid out of the kitchen and then upstairs, keeping his mind blank with mundane thoughts so Charles wouldn’t get suspicious.

 

Their bedroom was located away from the other rooms for privacy reasons. Also the house was still too big for all of them, as they hadn’t had any idea how many other gifted they could find. So they figured that better to be safe and sorry. The room itself was comfortable, if put simply. Close to the window stood a wooden table where a metallic basin and jug for a quick wash were, a wardrobe, two cozy armchairs in the corner with an old chessboard on a table between them. Near them was also a narrow book shelf where Charles planned to fit his personal favorites, instead of keeping them in the study or the library. (Erik had to admit that the man had done an admirable job with filing both.) He had promised that Erik could put some of his own books there too if he wanted, but Erik was sceptic that there would be any room left after Charles was done with it. The doors of the wardrobe, the drawers of the nightstands and the window all had metal in them so Erik could easily open and close them. And of course there was the queen sized bed, which frame was entirely made of metal. There was something calming to fall asleep and wake up surrounded by the hum of it against his consciousness. Not to mention other ways the headboard could be used. Erik had made an offhanded comment about it to Charles, who had only rolled his eyes and called him pervert. It wasn’t a no, but not a yes either, so Erik had left it to that. If Charles was interested, he would say it. Otherwise it was the softest bed they had ever had a fortune to sleep in, as Charles had hoarded the bed with pillows and blankets. No more sleeping on the hard ground or thin mattresses if they could help it.

 

Erik made his way to the wardrobe, opening it with a nudge with his powers and kneeling down to open a chest at the bottom of the wardrobe. It was full of miscellaneous stuff and among them the gift for Charles, wrapped in brown paper and tied with rough string. Erik couldn’t help but smile as he stood up and closed the doors again.

 

Downstairs, Charles had finished setting the table and returned to an empty kitchen. It puzzled him a little, but a quick sweep with his mind told him that Erik was still close. Very close. Charles turned around to face Erik, who stood by the door both hands behind his back. And didn’t that make the telepath’s curiosity spring. His powers were searching Erik’s surface thoughts before he even realized what he was doing, only to find nothing related to what the man was hiding behind his back.

“You know you could always just ask, schatz.” Erik smirked as he stepped inside and Charles smirked back, though he could feel his face turn red from getting caught.

“But where would the fun be in that?” He asked and leaned against the table as Erik walked to him. No one else could have told, but Charles had known the older man long enough that he could see that he was slightly nervous. And that just poked Charles’ curiosity even further.

“Just play along this once, please Charles?” Erik asked when he was right in front of the telepath, locking their eyes together.

“Alright.” He sighed and made a show to look innocent, knowing what it did to Erik. “Erik, darling, what do you have there?” He saw Erik swallow and knew that his act was appreciated.

 

Erik cleared his throat regaining his composure before he spoke with a tender smile.

“Well, actually, it’s something for you.” He said and showed his hand, where he was holding a simple brown packet. Charles couldn’t help but smile.

“Oh, what’s the occasion?” He asked and took the packet Erik handed to him. It was heavy and from the size of it, Charles suspected that it was a book of some kind.

“No occasion. I just saw it and thought about you.” Erik answered and made a gesture with his hand to hurry Charles to open the gift. If Charles wasn’t so eager to find out what Erik had found for him, he would have taken his precious time just to tease him further. But as it were, he didn’t want to wait either. So he ripped the paper off the gift and was confirmed that it was indeed a book. And not just any book.

“On The Origin of Species by Charles Darwin.” Charles read the title aloud breathlessly. He looked up to Erik, not knowing what to say. Erik just smiled at him and nodded.

“Open it.” His voice was almost a whisper, like he was afraid that he would ruin the moment if he spoke any louder. Charles did as his friend asked and opened the first badge. What first drew his attention was the text that clearly didn’t belong there, written in Erik’s clear cursive.

_For Charles, my own scientist and professor._

Charles felt his smile grow as he read the words. He had long ago let go of his dreams for higher education and becoming scientist, but knowing that Erik thought so highly of him made his heart swell.

 

When he finally managed to look at the rest of the badge he noticed the edition number, XI.

“It’s-“ His voice came out weak and he had to clear his throat to get it under control again. “It’s the newest edition.” He stated out loud and once again looked up at Erik, who let out a chuckle and nodded.

“Only the best for my schatz.” He said gently and Charles didn’t hesitate but threw his arms around Erik’s neck and stood on his toes to bring their lips together. The man’s arms wrapped around his waist, pulling him even closer and keeping him steady as they deepened the kiss. The link between their minds was wide open, their thoughts and feelings tangling together and making them one.

 

Charles was not sure how long they stayed like that, the time and their surroundings becoming irrelevant, until they had to draw back to breathe. Still, they didn’t break their embrace, resting their foreheads together and kept their arms where they were, breathing the same air.

_‘So I take you like it then.’_ Erik said and Charles let out a small laugh.

_‘You sound too smug, my friend.’_ He answered, opening his eyes to see his lover’s blown pupils rimmed with grey and green. _‘But yes, I love it. Thank you.’_

_‘I’m glad.’_ Erik said simply, kissing the telepaths temple. Their link calmed down, where earlier had been a blazing fire, was now a pleasantly warm ember. Charles let himself enjoy their closeness, mental and physical, until he felt a nudge at the back of his mind. A group of familiar minds was coming closer, glowing bright with life.

“The children are back.” Charles said and pulled back, taking a steadying breath. Erik let him go with a final kiss to the telepath’s hand. After all they’d done, Charles didn’t understand why he felt his flutter for such a simple thing. He shook his head to clear it before he gestured at the book. “I’ll just take this to our room.” Erik nodded at that and gave him a secretive smile.

“We can always continue this later…” The suggestion sent a chill run down Charles’ spine and he smirked back at the older man.

“We can. And I think I remember you saying something about the bedframe…” He didn’t stay to wait a response, but turned around and walked out of the kitchen. It might have taken some time for him to get an answer anyway, if Erik’s dumbstruck face was anything to go by. This evening was going to be interesting. Charles called out for the children and Logan that the dinner would be served shortly as he climbed the stairs with an easy smile on his lips.

 

…

 

The book wasn’t only surprise that day. Their rag-tag family enjoyed the dinner in the spacious dining room, around a huge table. The atmosphere was happy, although a bit tired too as the teenagers told how Logan had practically tortured them with their lessons. The man didn’t seem bothered by the accusations, in fact, he almost looked proud as he listened how the children talked about his teaching methods. Maybe it helped that the children were most likely exaggerating and their tone suggested that they weren’t too mad about it.

 

At some point Jean told that they had started to play games that would help Scott with his lack of sight and Ororo joined in soon, telling that Scott had been scared that he was going to have to leave. This made the whole table, and especially Alex, concerned and everyone started assuring the boy that they were very fond of him and they wouldn’t throw him out. Angel announced that they wouldn’t let him leave even if he wanted to. All the attention made Scott turn red as a tomato. Alex sat the rest of the meal his arm around his brother’s shoulders.

 

Later Erik was talking about upcoming trip to the nearest town with Angel when Jean, who was sitting between them, tried to reach out for a bread roll. The basket was too far, though and the girl seemed too stubborn to ask for help that she clearly needed. Angel noticed the girl’s struggle too.

“Need some help there hermanita?” She asked and didn’t quite manage to hide her amusement from her voice. But Jean just shook her head, trying to stretch her arm further.

“No, I almost got it.” ‘Almost’ being over 20 centimeters, distance that the girl couldn’t close no matter how hard she tried. At least not if she didn’t climb on top the table. Erik and Angel shared an amused look.

“Here, let me help.” Erik used his powers on metal wire that had been sewn on the basket to bring it closer. But he didn’t get a chance to move the basket when suddenly one bread flew from it straight to Jean’s outstretched hand.

 

For a long moment all three of them just stared at the bread, not really believing their eyes. Finally Jean was the one to break the stunned silence.

“Did you see that?!” She screamed and looked at Erik and Angel before she repeated the question. At this point everyone had turned to look at them with different states of confusion.

“See what, Jean?” Charles asked from the other end of the table. He was using his professor voice again. Jean almost shook in her seat with excitement as she waved the bred roll in the air.

“This bread just flew to my hand. It was like metal comes to Erik!” As she spoke everyone looked at Erik and Angel, looking for a proof. They both were able to just nod and Erik sent Charles the memory of what he had seen.

 

The other kids were first to recover from the shock.

“That is amazing!” Scott shouted and Ororo was not far behind him.

“Do it again!” She urged her friend and Jean held her empty hand towards the basket and all the others looked between her and the breads, waiting for something to happen. It took uncomfortably long time but finally another bread flew from the basket, just like earlier, to Jean’s waiting hand.

“I’m a breadbender!” The girl squealed and smiled as bright as the sun.

 

…

 

It wasn’t a wonder that the kids had trouble to settle for the night, too excited of the events of the day. When they realized that bread was not only thing Jean could move with her mind there was constantly something moving on their own or flying through the air. It took a huge amount of coaxing and patience from both Erik and Charles to get them to beds. By the time the kids finally fell asleep even the teenagers were tired and ready for bed too, so when Erik and Charles retreated to their own room, the whole house was silent. Charles swept through the minds of his new family to make sure that everyone was feeling contented, like he did every night, to find that everyone was sleeping soundly. Except for Logan who was sitting on the porch, enjoying the cool night and the silence.

“Everything alright?” Erik asked as Charles withdrew back to his own mind and opened his eyes. He nodded to Erik who was sitting on the bed taking off his boots.

“Yes.” Charles answered with a small smile and sat beside his lover. “Today was full of surprises.”

“Indeed.” Erik agreed and moved his boots neatly on the floor, beside the bed before sitting straight. “Who would have thought that out of the three normal children we took in all three are gifted too?”

“It is quite funny if you think about it. All of our lives, we thought that we were the only ones and now we found three just by chance.” Charles shook his head, it all seemed still so bizarre and yet so right. The house, teaching and their new family of gifted people framed his life now and made the newfound domesticity seem completely normal.

 

It was almost enough to make him forget that Sebastian Shaw was still somewhere out there, possibly ready to take it all away.

 

“Charles,” Erik’s voice and a thumb that tried to soothe his frown away pulled the telepath from his bitter thoughts. “Something’s bothering you.” There was an unasked question in the statement, one that Charles didn’t want to think about. Not tonight. So he met Erik’s concerned gaze with a small smile and shook his head.

“It’s nothing.” He assured and even when Erik didn’t believe him, he let it go, a gesture Charles was grateful for. They’d known each other long enough to know when to push and when to back down. And right now, Charles needed a distraction more than a listener of his worries. “Maybe you can help me to forget.” He said and took Erik’s wrist and brought his hand from where the man had left it to rest near his temple to kiss his palm. Feeling the warmness of Erik’s skin against his lips and cheek made a chill run down Charles’ spine. He looked up at Erik’s eyes through his lashes and lowered his voice. “You can tie me to the bed and touch me, until only thing I can remember is your name.” He watched as Erik’s steely green eyes were consumed by black, until only a thin rim of color remained. The older man swallowed once and used his free hand to hold Charles by the back of his neck.

“Is that what you want?” Erik asked, his voice almost a whisper, as he brought them inches apart, their noses almost touching. Charles felt his heart skip a beat.

“Please.” He breathed out and was immediately consumed by a fierce kiss.

 

The rest of their clothing was laying abandoned on the floor in no time and their lovemaking slowed down from impatient to something more sensual. Charles let his hand wander over Erik’s chest and back, feeling the muscles move under the skin. He stopped every now and then to trace old scars, remembering how he had gotten every single one and being so grateful that they both were still here and alive. Eventually his right hand found the scar on Erik’s shoulder and the worries from earlier came back. It had been so close last time, he had almost lost Erik. Now he was responsible for nine others. What if he wasn’t strong enough? What if someone else got hurt, or worse? What if-

“Charles.” Erik’s voice both aloud and in his mind snapped him back to the present. The older man was watching him with intense gaze, like he was searching for something. “Stay with me Charles.” He said and put his hand on Charles’ cheek, forcing him to look at him in the eyes. Charles let out a breath he didn’t realize he had been holding in. He let Erik’s presence ground him again and nodded after a while.

“Sorry.” Charles felt embarrassed, he had the love of his life in bed with him and yet his mind just couldn’t focus. Erik stroked his hair, the familiar gesture soothing the telepath’s nerves.

“Do you want to stop?” Charles shook his head and managed to offer the man on top of him a small smirk.

“Don’t you dare to leave me like this.” And to prove his point, he lifted his hips and rubbed their crotches together, making them both groan.

“Well in that case…” Erik gripped Charles’ hands and moved them over his head. The first touch of cool metal against his skin made Charles shiver as the bedframe twisted and wound itself around his wrists. When the movement stopped, Charles tried his new bounds, finding them firm, but not too tight. Erik kissed him once on the forehead, before he smirked down at Charles, showing all his teeth. “Let’s distract that busy mind of yours.” Charles might have whimpered at that.

 

…

 

The town they visited when necessary was about two hours away from home and large enough that their odd group didn’t draw any unwanted attention. At least nothing a little telepathic nudge couldn’t fix. At this point the pattern started to be familiar to everyone, they split up into smaller groups to gather everything and would meet at their wagon in one hour.

 

Erik was in charge of the food supplies. They were thinking of proper farming for the next year, but right now all they had was a small vegetable garden so some help from the local farms was needed. Especially now that the winter was coming, slowly but surely.  Alex and Armando were with him, to help with carrying. Raven and Charles had gone to sell some of their loot from their last job, their powers helped a lot there. Angel and Sean were keeping an eye on the kids and gather any other items they might need. Logan was supposed to be with them, but more often than not he visited some local bar instead to get a drink, or several. Hank had stayed behind at the house, for obvious reasons. Every time Charles offered to stay with him, to keep him company, but the younger man always declined, saying that he enjoyed a moment of peace and quiet. Though Erik had a suspicion that it wasn’t that simple, he was willing to let Charles handle it. He and Hank could spend hours talking about science, a topic which Erik couldn’t follow, and Hank always became timid when he had to spend time with Erik, so Charles was clearly more prepared to help the lad.

 

Everything was going just smoothly, they were making the last trip back to their wagon and Erik was listening a friendly banter between the two boys behind him halfheartedly. The two had become fast friends soon after Alex and Scott had arrived to the manor. Armando’s level-headedness truly balanced Alex’s more impulsive nature. All in all, everyone seemed to get along just fine.

 

A sudden sound of something heavy dropping to the ground drew Erik away from his thoughts and when he turned to look behind him, he saw the smaller of the two boxes Armando had been carrying on the ground and a small group of some angry-looking men.

“Watch it you damn negro!” The man standing closest to the boys growled and Armando went stiff, but showed no other signs of reaction.

“I’m very sorry sir.” He said, bowing his head slightly. His voice sounded trained, like an invisible hand was choking him. He moved to pick up the dropped box, but the man had other ideas. He put his boot on top of the box just as Armando tried to lift it.

“Not so fast you dirty-“ The man was cut off though, as he had to dodge Alex’s fist. The blond had dropped the sack he had been carrying and was now standing beside his friend, looking absolutely furious.

“You were the one who walked into Armando! So either you apologize to him or walk away before I beat your sorry ass.”

“Alex, please. It’s fine.” Armando tried to calm down his friend but this time his words only seemed to stroke the other’s anger.

“The hell it’s fine!” He yelled and would probably have burned the men if Erik hadn’t stepped in.

“Alex, calm yourself.” He said with stern voice and put his hand on the young man’s shoulder.

“But-“

“But nothing. You can’t reason with idiots or shout any sense to them.” Erik interrupted the boy and then turned to look at the men. “So you should just go and stop wasting our time.” The way the men’s faces turned red was almost amusing.

“I don’t have to listen to you and if you think for a one second that-“ The man had walked to Erik, pointing him with his finger, but the metalbender’s patience had run out and he gripped the man’s wrist and twisted the man around. The man let out a pained yelp and his friends took steps backwards. Cowards, Erik thought. The man in his hold tried to escape, but every move caused his arm pain.

“Now listen.” Erik spoke to the man, letting his voice carry the anger and disgust he felt. “I will let you go and you will take your friends and walk away. If I ever see any of you even look at my wards, I make you wish that you were dead. Do you understand?” The man nodded, but it wasn’t good enough, so Erik tightened his grip, making the man howl, and asked again, louder so the others heard too. “Do you understand?”

“Yes!” The man screamed and with that, Erik pushed him away. The man fell to his hands and knees, but stumbled up with a help of his friends. He glanced back at Erik, whose face was a blank mask, before telling his friends it was time to leave, his voice shaky.

 

Erik watched the men go and turn around the corner before he turned to Armando, who was still kneeling on the ground.

“Are you alright?” He asked and the boy blinked several times, like he was just starting to realize what had actually happened.

“Yeah. Yeah, I’m fine.” Armando managed to say, but he was shaking slightly and he seemed to have trouble with breathing. Erik moved the boxes out of the way before kneeling down in front of the young man. He put his hands gently, but firmly on Armando’s shoulders.

“Hey, they’re gone now. You’re safe. Just breathe, deep and steady.” Erik instructed and the boy tried to follow. Alex stood beside them the whole time, moving restlessly, like he wanted to do something, like go and beat the bastards who had bullied his friend.

“They deserved worse.” He hissed and Erik could almost feel the frustration radiating from him.

“Trust me, I wouldn’t have felt any remorse if I had killed them.” He said and looked at Alex straight to the eye. “But that would have drawn too much attention to us. We need to lay low.” The blond didn’t seem too pleased with the answer, but nodded and took a couple of calming breaths himself. In the meanwhile, Erik reached for Charles with his mind.

_‘Erik? What is it?’_ The telepath’s voice was calm, but Erik could sense the worry underneath it.

_‘There was an accident. Nothing major, but-‘_

_‘No worries, I’ll take care of it.’_ Charles assured quicly and after a short pause continued. _‘Do you need me there?’_ Erik shook his head slightly, even though he knew Charles couldn’t see it.

_‘No. I can manage.’_ He promised and felt a ghost of a kiss on his cheek.

_‘I know. You are a wonderful parent.’_ And with that, Charles withdrew from his mind and left Erik with strange feeling in his chest.

 

Soon Armando’s breathing eased enough for him to stand up. Alex insisted on carrying the bigger box Armando had been carrying. The other had protested, but understood that the blond needed something to do, so he relented and let him take the box. The rest of the way to the wagon was a quiet and tense affair, but Angel and Sean were there already with the kids and the distressing feel receded soon after.

 

…

 

That night, Harry was drinking his fourth beer when a strange man sat at the same table across from him.

“I hear you came across an interesting group of people today.” It took a moment for Harry’s hazy mind to realize that this man was speaking to him and even more time to get his mouth to work.

“Who… Who the hell are you?” He slurred and though most of the man’s face was hidden by a shadow of his hat, Harry could see his lips move from a polite smile into thin line.

“A friend. And I’d like to know if you saw either of these men.” The man then pulled two papers from his jacket and laid them on the table. They were wanted posters and the amount of money offered from them made Harry swallow. He tried to remember the weird incident that had indeed happened today, but came out empty handed.

“Look man, I wish I could help you, but nothing really happened. Just a stupid misunderstanding-“

“Just look at the pictures.” The man’s words were as cold as winter and Harry recognized the threat underneath. “Maybe you’ve seen them somewhere else.” Harry started to feel piercing headache coming, but did as the man said. Better not to make him any angrier. So he looked down at the pictures. The more boyish looking with longer hair didn’t look familiar at all, but the other, the one with sharper angles and angry eyes… There was something nagging at the back of his head, like he had seen the man somewhere but he had no idea where or when.

 

The headache became more intense and Harry had to rub his temples to try and ease it. Maybe he should just head home.

“I might have seen this one somewhere, but I’m not sure.” He pointed the picture and stood up. The stranger smiled at him and Harry felt a shiver through his whole body.

“Thank you for your time.” He said and Harry almost ran out of the bar. The night air seemed to help with his headache and he made his way towards home. The streets were almost empty, as they always were at this time of night, but for some reason Harry felt more restless than usual. Like someone was following him. He tried to look around, but saw no one. Still, he quickened his steps. Just in case.

 

Everything happened so fast. There was a cracking sound and a man appeared in front of him from smoke. Harry was grabbled and the noise was there again, followed by an unpleasant feeling of twisting his in his stomach. And then, he was falling. And in the moonlight he saw a demon, smiling with all his teeth before it vanished with a cloud of smoke.

 

…

 

_‘Did you get everything?’_

_‘There wasn’t much. But someone had definitely tempered with his memories. They must be close.’_

_‘Good. It won’t take long for you to find them dear, will it?’_

_‘Not at all.’_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> About that gift Erik gave to Charles, it was (if I did my research correctly) the last edition which Darwin made changes, so it was like an updated version.  
> I will do my best to write the next chapter as soon as I can, but at this point it doesn't mean much, does it? XD Hahaha ha ha... I go to my corner where I belong...


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